Fallbrook High School board approves layoffs

By: TOM PFINGSTEN - Staff Writer
Educators lament dire state budget, seek to cut corners | Tuesday, February 26, 2008 12:47 AM PST ∞

FALLBROOK -- Fallbrook High School board members approved a package of budget cuts Monday to cover an anticipated $1.5 million budget shortfall, spreading the cuts among teachers, classified staff, administrators and themselves.

Among the reductions approved during the meeting were 12 layoffs -- seven teachers and five classified staff members -- that would take effect in the 2008-09 school year and save the district $718,000.

The layoffs were approved over the objections of teachers and classified staffers, who requested more time to explore other money-saving measures. There are about 150 teachers and 119 classified personnel in the district.

The Fallbrook Union High School District board members also took the first step toward eliminating the monthly stipends and medical coverage that they receive for serving on the board, a move that would save nearly $70,000.

To finalize the elimination of benefits and stipends, the board still needs to change the bylaws that govern board members' reimbursement, a vote that is expected to come at the next board meeting.

The $1.5 million shortfall represents about 5 percent of the district's proposed $29 million budget and is a result of the sweeping budget cuts to education outlined last month by Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger.

When the current fiscal year ends in June, the district expects to have spent $29.2 million since last summer, and to have received $28.9 million, leaving about a $267,160 deficit that will carry over.

The 2008-09 budget looks far worse, with a projected $27.9 million in revenue to cover $29.4 million in costs -- the figure before the cuts approved Monday night.

"Unfortunately, we have to do a lot of cutting," said Bill O'Connor, board president. "What I see here is not pleasant, but it affects everyone."

"I've lost a lot of sleep over this," board member Mike Schulte said. "But we have to be fiscally responsible."

The layoffs and the elimination of board stipends and benefits were included in a list of budget cuts proposed by district Superintendent Bob French.

The list also included reductions to the administrative staff and nonpersonnel cuts, such as reductions in maintenance and technology at the school.

French pointed out that the cuts mean that the same amount of work will have to be done by fewer people.

"Everyone will feel the effects of this," he said.

Before the vote, several teachers spoke, asking that more work be done to explore alternative ways of cutting costs before the district lays off personnel.

"It's been difficult. I realize that, and I sympathize with a lot of the things that you have to do," said longtime teacher Joe Comella.

"I think we need to continue to look" for ways to increase revenue and reduce expenses, Comella said. "Don't be too anxious to hurry and get something through, at the expense of losing some good, quality people."

Representatives of the classified union were more adamant in asking that the board delay its decision on the layoffs until its next meeting March 10.

Gene Draper, a Fallbrook High School custodian, said that the nine custodians who keep the 2,800-student campus clean already are stretched thin.

"With the custodians we have today, we struggle on a daily basis to keep the campus clean," Draper said. "I take a lot of pride in my job, but I'm kind of embarrassed, because I can't do the job the way it needs to be done."

The cuts would also get rid of a computer technician, a typist and an interpreter for the deaf, but the issue of custodial staff dominated the discussion.

Wrestling coach Roy Oliver, who contracted a potentially deadly staph infection known as methicillin-resistant Staphylococcus aureus, or MRSA, in a Fallbrook High School gym last month, said he knows firsthand the value of keeping high-use athletic facilities clean.

"I thank God that I caught it before one of my athletes caught it," Oliver said. "This is a disease that's getting ready to take off, and if we don't take care Š it's going to be a problem.

"I feel it's important that our custodians come behind us to really keep these kids safe," he said.

It was unclear if the district could avoid some of the layoffs, which will not take effect for several months, should the budget picture improve -- by all accounts, an unlikely scenario.

-- Contact staff writer Tom Pfingsten at (760) 740-3516 or tpfingsten@nctimes.com.

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